Lunchtime Lecture and Book Signing – Death in the Baltic: The Sinking of Wilhelm Gustoff with Cathryn Prince

April 24, 2013 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Event Navigation

In January 1945 more than 10,000 women, children, sick, and elderly packed aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, which was evacuating German civilians in Berlin that were trapped in the Red Army’s way. After leaving port, three Soviet torpedoes struck it, inflicting catastrophic damage and throwing passengers into the frozen waters of the Baltic. Over 9,400 perished in the night—six times the number on the Titanic. Yet as the Cold War began, no one acknowledged the event. Drawing on interviews with survivors, as well as letters and diaries of those who perished, author Cathryn Prince reconstructs this forgotten moment in history.